Martha Abbott-Shim

A Comparison of School Readiness Outcomes for Children Randomly Assigned to a Head Start Program and the Program's Wait List

A research study with a wide range of outcomes related to school readiness, including health, social skills, cognitive skills, and language skills was conducted with eligible 4-year-old applicants and their parents within a southeastern Head Start program of high quality. Children and their families in the Head Start treatment and wait list comparison groups were given a battery of assessments. The study used growth curve modeling and traditional analysis of variance when only 2 measurements of outcomes were available. Initial status was equivalent and the growth rates for the Head Start children were statistically significantly faster than the comparison children on the receptive vocabulary and phonemic awareness measures. There was a statistically significant time by group interaction and main effect of time for the problem behavior index of the social functioning measure. The parent report of health outcomes also showed statistically significant differences between the 2 groups with the treatment group reporting more healthy responses.

Structural model of head start classroom quality

Abstract The purpose of this research study was to develop, test, and validate a model that identifies the characteristics and beliefs of teachers and aides, and the classroom structural dimensions associated with Head Start classroom quality. The quality of classroom teaching practices was collected using the Assessment Profile for Early Childhood Programs: Research Version. Classroom structural characteristics were collected by observers. Teachers and teacher aides completed three self-report instruments: Teacher Beliefs Scale, Instructional Activities Scale, and Family Involvement Survey. Data analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling with the Lisrel VII computer program. The model was tested with Year 1 classroom level data and validated with Year 2 data. Education Level was shown to directly affect Inappropriate Beliefs, which impacted Inappropriate Instructional Activities, which influenced Classroom Quality. Neither Education Level nor Teacher Beliefs had direct effects on Classroom Quality, but they had indirect effects through Instructional Activities. Classroom Structure was associated directly with Quality. Education Level and Classroom Quality were associated directly with Attitudes Toward Families.

Staff Perceptions of Research in the Context of Specific Strategies for Collaboration with Head Start Programs.

Abstract This study focused on the strategies researchers used to build and maintain partnerships with three Head Start programs in the southeastern United States and the attitudes of the staff of these programs toward research partnership. In order to explore the relationship between staff attitudes toward research partnership, job satisfaction, and perceptions of the Head Start program’s policies and procedures, teachers and teacher aides were surveyed using the Job Satisfaction Scale , the Policy and Program Management Inventory , and a researcher-developed instrument about their attitudes toward the research partnership. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The results of this study indicate that staff support for this research partnership was high and broad-based within the three Head Start partner programs, demonstrating evidence for the effectiveness of the suggested strategies.

The Influence of Teacher Individualizing Practices on Child Developmental Progress.

A locally constructed developmental checklist, administered by teachers in a large southeastern Head Start program in suburban and rural areas, was used as an outcome measure to test the hypothesis that classroom quality is related to child progress in meeting developmental milestones. A two-level Hierarchical Linear Model was used to examine the influence of child-level demographic characteristics and classroom quality on child progress. In the child model (n=1,407 children), preassessment and childs age were associated with child postassessment scores. Three classroom models (n=80 classrooms) were estimated: (a) class-mean postassessment score as outcome, (6) pre- and postassessment slope as outcome, and (c) age-postassessment slope as outcome. The class-mean preassessment was positively associated with the class-mean postassessment. For the pre- and postassessment slope as outcome model, class-mean age and class size were both positively associated with pre and postassessment slope. The Individualizin...

Head Start Mentor Teachers Impact Child Outcomes in Protege Teachers' Classrooms.

This study describes the results of an evaluation of the Individualized Learning Intervention, a mentoring program for early childhood educators. This mentoring program includes 3 components: Mentor Teacher Seminar, Mentor teachers supporting professional development of Protege teachers throughout the school year, and Mentor coordinator meetings with Mentor teachers to support them in their mentor role. Sixteen Mentors, experienced teachers who maintained high quality classroom learning experiences, and 16 Proteges, less experienced teachers, in Head Start classrooms were selected and then randomly assigned to treatment and control conditions in the study. The results of this study demonstrate that mentoring, particularly when it is delivered by experienced teachers who have been trained to be Mentors and coupled by support to the Mentors themselves, can enhance the cognitive, language, and social emotional developmental progress of young children. In addition, the experimental Mentors and Protege teacher...

An Evaluation of the Individualized Learning Intervention: A Mentoring Program for Early Childhood Teachers

This study describes the results of an evaluation of the Individualized Learning Intervention (ILI), a mentoring program for early childhood educators that is built upon adult self-directed learning experiences and the collaborative support of others. Sixteen Mentor and 16 Protege teachers in Head Start classrooms were selected for participation in the study. Each Mentor and Protege pair was randomly assigned to either the treatment or control condition. In the treatment condition the Mentors participated in the ILI, which has 3 components including a 50-hr mentor seminar, ongoing mentoring of Proteges by Mentors, and support for Mentors by the Mentor Coordinator. Evidence is presented for the impact of the mentoring program on enhanced child developmental progress as well as on the professional growth of the Mentors and Proteges.

An evaluation of the intensity of mentoring: child outcomes

This study examines the intensity effect of a mentoring intervention for Head Start teachers, the Individualised Learning Intervention (ILI), as it impacts child social emotional outcomes. Pairs of Mentor and Protégé teachers across three sites in two states were randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Mentors in the intervention group participated in a 50-hour mentor seminar and supported the intervention Protégé teachers’ professional growth and development across one Head Start school year. Mentors themselves were also supported by a Mentor Coordinator. As part of a quasi-experimental study of implementation fidelity effects, the intensity of mentoring intervention was measured by the Intensity of Intervention Scale and the intervention group was divided into high and moderate intensity levels. Evidence is presented for the effects of high intensity levels of the ILI Mentoring programme, relative to moderate intensity and control conditions, on the children in the Protégé teachers’ classrooms. These results lead to practice and policy implications regarding the implementation of mentoring programmes such as the ILI which are designed for early childhood educators and built upon adult self-directed learning experiences and collaborative support.